Display carton



Jan. 17, 1967 v I L. CARTER 3,298,504

DISPLAY CARTON Filed Dec. 21, 19 4 INVENTOR. jazz/z if Karier BY zr gaaw *M United States Patent 3,298,504 DISPLAY CARTON Frank L. Carter, Indian Orchard, ,Mass., assignor to Pioneer Packaging, Inc., Chicopee, Mass, a corporation of Massachusetts r I Filed Dec. 21, 1964, Ser. No. 419,953 3 Claims. (Cl. 206-4514) This invention relates to a display device for vending articles and has for its principal objects to provide a carton for holding an article so that it may be seen but cannot be surreptitiously or otherwise removed without destroying the carton thereby to discourage stealing; to provide a carton for holding an article in such fashion as to enhance its appearance and to conceal the interior of the carton; and to provide a carton which is of simple sturdy construction which can be readily manufactured in blank form for folding by means of conventional diecutting, folding and gluing machinery.

As herein illustrated, the device comprises a carton having side and end walls, one of the side walls containing an elongate opening within which is adapted to be seated a blister cap having a lateral flange at its base engageable with the other side wall opposite the opening. The blister cap is longer than the opening so that one end thereof, when situated in the carton within the opening, projects beyond the end of the opening beneath the wall in which the opening is formed, and a part is connected to each of the two sides of the opening and the opposite end thereof which extends inwardly from the edge of the opening toward the opposite wall into engagement with the wall of the blister cap. These parts collectively constitute a frame surrounding the opening, the lower or inner edges of which prevent removal of the blister cap and hence the article.

The invention will now be described in greater detail with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective of the device showing the manner of displaying the article;

FIG. 2 is a transverse vertical section taken on the line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal vertical section taken on the line 3-3 of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 4 is a plan view of the blank of which the device is made.

Referring to FIG. 1, the carton has top and bottom walls 12 and 14, side walls 16 and end walls 18, all of rectangular configuration and joined to form a receptacle which is' rectangular in horizontal and vertical sections.

The carton is designed for the purpose of displaying for sale an article such as a tube of tooth paste, face cream,'medicant, or the like, to enable the customer to see the tube .so as to be able .to judge its size, but, at the same time, to prevent surreptitious removal of the tube from the carton. To this end, the top wall 12 contains an opening 20 which has ends 22 and 24 and sides 26-26. The opening 20 is shorter than the transverse width of the top wall 12 and the tube T which is to be placed in the carton within the opening is longer than the opening, so that it is necessary to insert one end of the tube, preferably the end to which is threaded the closing cap C, into the opening first and then push it beneath the top wall 12 beyond the end 22 of the opening, whereupon the base B of the tube may be pressed downwardly into the carton.

Prior to placing the tube T in the carton within the opening 20 it is inserted in a blister cap 28 having an upwardly concave wall 30 and lateral flange 32 at its base designed to receive the tube and to be seated with-in the opening with the flange 32 engaged with the bottom wall 14. This blister cap is of a transparent cellulose 3,298,504 Patented Jan. 17, 1967 acetate or similar plastic material which may be molded so as to have a contour which is generally similar to that of the tube.

The blister cap 28 is retained in the carton by parts 34-34 connected to the sides 26-26 of the opening 20 and a part 36 connected to the end 24 of the opening. These parts 34-34 and 36 are in the form of flaps connected by hinges 38-38 and 40, respectively, to the edges of the opening, are folded inwardly and downwardly at angles which slope toward the blister cap and their lower edges 42 and 44, by engagement with the wall of the blister cap and ultimately with the flange 32 when an attempt is made to lift the blister cap out of the opening, prevent such removal, without destruction of the carton, or at least make removal so difficult as to make it evident to anyone in the vicinity that the article is being tampered with.

The blister cap 28 is approximately equal in length to the transverse width of the interior of the container so that after inserting it in position it cannot move transversely within the opening. The part 36 at the end 24 of the opening contains at its inner edge 44 a recess 45 complemental to the end of the blister cap, so that following displacement of the part 36 to admit the end of the blister cap at the base B of the tube, it snaps inwardly to a position such that the recessed portion 45 in the edge 44 straddles the top of the wall of the blister cap (FIG. 2).

The parts 34-34 and 40 which engage the sides of the blister cap and the end collectively form a frame within the opening 20 which conceals the interior of the carton beyond the edges of the opening thereby improving the appearance of the package and also forming a mat to set off the article which may, if desired, be colored to provide a pleasing contrast. These parts are elastically yieldable about their hinges so as to make it possible to insert the article, together with the blister cap, into posit-ion and yet, as pointed out before, will prevent unauthorized removal of the blister cap and the article.

As herein illustrated, the opening 20 is located near one end of the carton thus leaving a broad area of the wall 12 available for advertising. However, the opening 20 may be situated symmetrically with respect to the ends of the carton and the overall length of the carton may be reduced to substantially the width of the opening.

The blank, as shown in FIG. 4, of which the carton is made is cut out of sheet board of suitable stiffness and embodies a rectangular portion comprising top and bottom walls 12 and 14, side walls 16, end walls 18, tongues 50 and tucking flaps 52. In accordance with this invention, transversely spaced cuts a and b are made in the wall 12, the corresponding ends of these cuts are joined by crease lines 0-0, and a T-shaped piece is cut from the wall extending from the cut a to the cut b, thus to form the parts 34-34 and the hinges 38-38. The recessed part 36 and the hinge 40 are formed integral with the wall 16 at the opposite end of the blank. When the blank is folded, the part 36 is situated inside the wall 16 at the opposite end of the blank and is folded over at its upper edge into the opening.

It should be understood that the present disclosure is for the purpose of illustration only and that this invention includes all modifications and equivalents which fall within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A display device comprising a carton having spaced parallel bottom and top panels and a series of wall panels encircling and joining said bottom and top panels, said top panel containing an elongate opening through it which is shorter than the panel, within which is adapted to be seated a blister cap designed to retain an article to be displayed, an inverted blister cap situated in said elongate opening, said blister cap having a fiat marginal flange at its base in contact with the bottom panel, said blister cap being longer than said opening so that one end of the blister cap projects beyond one end of said opening beneath the top panel in which the opening is formed, a retaining flange hingedly connected to each of the side edges of said opening and to said other end thereof, said retaining flanges sloping downwardly and inwardly into the opening into engagement with the blister cap, said retaining flanges collectively forming a mat circumscribing the opening which conceals the interior of the carton, and said retaining flange at said other end containing a recess complementary to the transverse section of the blister cap at that end engaged with the blister cap which prevents upward or lateral displacement of the blister cap.

2. A display device according to claim 1, wherein the marginal flange at each end of the blister cap substantially abuts a wall panel at that end.

3. A display device according to claim 1, characterized in that the opposite ends of the retaining flange at said other end of the opening are retained by engagement with the ends of the retaining flanges at the sides of the opening.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,018,861 10/1935 Mertz 20679 2,895,834 7/1959 Brav 20645.19 2,946,433 7/1960 Hennessey 206-4519 3,116,825 1/1964 Thomas 20645.19

LOUIS G. MANCENE, Primary Examiner.

THERON E. CONDON, Examiner.

W. T. DIXSON, JR., Assistant Examiner. 

1. A DISPLAY DEVICE COMPRISING A CARTON HAVING SPACED PARALLEL BOTTOM AND TOP PANELS AND A SERIES OF WALL PANELS ENCIRCLING AND JOINING SAID BOTTOM AND TOP PANELS, SAID TOP PANEL CONTAINING AN ELONGATE OPENING THROUGH IT WHICH IS SHORTER THAN THE PANEL, WITHIN WHICH IS ADAPTED TO BE SEATED A BLISTER CAP DESIGNED TO RETAIN AN ARTICLE TO BE DISPLAYED, AN INVERTED BLISTER CAP SITUATED IN SAID ELONGATE OPENING, SAID BLISTER CAP HAVING A FLAT MARGINAL FLANGE AT ITS BASE IN CONTACT WITH THE BOTTOM PANEL, SAID BLISTER CAP BEING LONGER THAN SAID OPENING SO THAT ONE END OF THE BLISTER CAP PROJECTS BEYOND ONE END OF SAID OPENING BENEATH THE TOP PANEL IN WHICH THE OPENING IS FORMED, A RETAINING FLANGE HINGEDLY CONNECTED TO EACH OF THE SIDE EDGES OF SAID OPENING AND TO SAID OTHER END THEREOF, SAID RETAINING FLANGES SLOPING DOWNWARDLY AND INWARDLY INTO THE OPENING INTO ENGAGEMENT WITH THE BLISTER CAP, SAID RETAINING FLANGES COLLECTIVELY FORMING A MAT CIRCUMSCRIBING THE OPENING WHICH CONCEALS THE INTERIOR OF THE CARTON, AND SAID RETAINING FLANGE AT SAID OTHER END CONTAINING A RECESS COMPLEMENTARY TO THE TRANSVERSE SECTION OF THE BLISTER CAP AT THAT END ENGAGED WITH THE BLISTER CAP WHICH PREVENTS UPWARD OR LATERAL DISPLACEMENT OF THE BLISTER CAP. 